Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty To Cut $32 Million In Manufacturing Tariffs

OTTAWA - Finance Minister Jim Flaherty is eliminating $32 million in annual tariffs on some of the goods used in Canadian manufacturing.

The move means Canadian manufacturers will no longer have to pay customs duties to import key inputs used in food processing, furniture and transportation equipment.

Flaherty says Sunday's announcement is just the latest step in the government's 2010 commitment to make Canada a tariff-free zone for industrial manufacturers, and is part of Ottawa's grand plan to foster job growth.

"By lowering costs for these businesses, we are enhancing their ability to compete in domestic and foreign markets and helping them invest and create jobs here at home," he said in a press release.

He says the list of 70 different products that will soon be tariff-free is the result of long consultations with business.

The list includes apple juice concentrate and other mixtures used to make drinks, hardware for furniture, parts used to make trailers and transport equipment, gelatin capsules for pharmaceuticals, and conveyor belts.

In an interview CTV's Question Period on Sunday, Flaherty said many of the tariffs dated from a previous era, and no longer make any sense.

"It relates to things like fasteners in clothing and trailer parts, a series of things that were tariff-able before but now they're just an impediment to Canadian business, Canadian manufacturing," he said.

"Some of these old-fashioned tariffs get in the way. So we're getting rid of them. We're leading the world, in fact, in reducing tariffs on our manufacturing sector."

Since 2009, the government says it has eliminated tariffs on 1,800 products, saving business $435 million a year.

Origin
Source: Huff 

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